I Can Wait Forever
by dulceata
Summary: He had time in his favor. Her forever was set. Now... say your right words.


He stared into the crystal, watching her. It seemed like he was always watching these days. His beautiful girl, his beautiful Sarah. And he would wait

_You look so beautiful today_

_When you're sitting there it's hard for me to look away_

He waited and he wondered. What could he have done differently? What could he have said to make her stay?

_So I try to find the words that I could say_

_I know distance doesn't matter but you feel so far away_

She was sleeping now, safe in the sanctuary of her own room. Far away from evil kings and confusing mazes. It was almost as though he could touch her. Softly stroke her cheek and brush away the strand of hair that framed her face. Leave soft kisses on her forehead and her lips.

But he couldn't. He held no power over her.

_And I can't lie but every time I leave my heart turns gray_

_And I want to come back home to see your face tonight_

_'Cause I just can't take it_

Time had passed, years had gone by and Sarah had grown, matured into a beautiful woman. Still with long dark hair and the same brilliant green eyes, but now curved. And still he waited.

Waited as she fell in love. Waited her first heartbreak as if it was his own, and waited as she got up to go out again the next day.

_Another day without you with me_

_Is like a blade that cuts right through me_

_But I can wait, I can wait forever_

Sometimes she still dreamed of castles and princesses and happily ever afters. And he mourned with her when she woke up to cold reality.

Sometimes she cried, but never, never said his name. So he never answered. She had to say the right words.

And still he waited, heart shattering with each moment.

_When you call my heart stops beating_

_When you're gone it won't stop bleeding _

_But I can wait, I can wait forever_

More time had past, years had gone by and Sarah had aged. She was still beautiful, but she had become an old woman, with silvering hair and laughter lines around her mouth. Yet her eyes still shone with a sense of adventure. As if they would never grow old.

He was still waiting.

_You look so beautiful today_

_It's like every time I turn around I see your face_

He had to leave his crystals more often these days. He had a kingdom to run, and things had continued on even after she had left. But, in a way, they had also slowed down. All that was left were moments in time.

He saw her first real love and her marriage. He was there when her first child was born. And he was there when her husband died.

Sometimes he dreamed that it was him that she had loved. When he dreamed those, he wished his crystals could trap him in such a wish.

_The thing I'll miss the most is waking up next to you_

_When I look into your eyes, I wish that I could stay_

He watched time pass by in his crystals, living a kind of double life. His body in the day to day activities of the Labyrinth, but his heart in the nuances of Sarah's world.

He was still waiting.

_Another day without you with me_

_Is like a blade that cuts right through me_

_But I can wait, I can wait forever_

His days were unending and unchanging. He would never die, and yet he died each day she wasn't with him.

And he waited.

_I know it feels like forever_

_I guess that's just the price I've got to pay_

He watched the span of her life come closer and closer to its end. Watched her body fade, her brilliant eyes never dimming. He knew she was mortal, but it saddened him that she would experience time in such a ways.

And still he waited.

_But when I come back home to feel your touch makes it better_

_Until the day there's nothing else that I can do_

_And I just can't take it_

He heard when she said it. She said her right words.

"Jareth, I wish the Goblin King would come. Right now" she whispered as she lay gasping. Her eyes finally fading.

He was done waiting.

_When you call my heart stops beating_

_When you're gone it won't stop bleeding_

And somewhere far off, in a ballroom full of shimmering veils and crystal chandeliers, Sarah glided through the crowds of masked strangers, and saw him.

Green eyes met mismatched fey. He had waited for her forever.

_But I can wait, I can wait, I can wait forever_


End file.
